Most road workers face abuse by drivers

15 August 2007
 
More than four out of five road workers in central and southern Scotland have been abused, either verbally or physically, by motorists.

Workers for Amey and BEAR Scotland have been shot at with air rifles, had missiles hurled at them, and endure daily verbal abuse, according to a survey carried out by the two companies.

Also revealed was that 77% ‘near misses’ recorded at road works in 2006/07 in southwest Scotland were down to driver behaviour.

To help tackle the issues raised by the survey, Amey and BEAR, which maintain highways across much of Scotland, are joining forces with Transport Scotland and the RAC Foundation in asking drivers to take more care where road workers are operating. They say the highway is a road worker’s office, and drivers should consider the difficulties caused by vehicles rushing past at speeds of up to 70mph and more.

Bruce Donaldson, Amey’s unit manager for southwest Scotland, said: ‘Can you imagine trying to do your job with cars and HGVs flying past at 70mph in all weather, yet all you have to protect you is a plastic cone, a hard-hat and high-vis clothing? As a company, we operate stringent guidelines to ensure the safety of our colleagues through measures such as training, additional safety signage and encouraging our employees to report all “near misses”.’

The group says the highway maintenance industry across the UK is proactive in analysing working practices and delivering training and initiatives to make roadworks sites as safe as possible for both workers and road-users. But the one element that the industry is least able to control is driver behaviour.

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